Over 50 killed as suicide bomber explodes in Pakistan mosque
Omer Farooq Khan, TNN |
Aug 19, 2011, 06.37PM IST
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PESHAWAR: A suicide bomber has killed at least 50 people and injured more than 100 others when he blew himself up inside a mosque in Pakistan's north western tribal region on Friday, government officials said.
The blast occurred when about 500 hundred people had gathered for Friday prayers at the mosque in Ghundai village of Jamrud town in the Khyber tribal region. The area is of strategic importance and serves as the doorway to the Khyber Pass which leads into Afghanistan. The US and NATO forces use Khyber Pass as a principal route for its lethal and non-lethal supplies in the current Afghan theater of conflict.
The Friday prayers normally draw bigger crowds in the month of Ramadan. "Had the mosque's building being caved in, the casualties would have been more," locals said. TV footage from the scene showed a heavily damaged building with marks of pellets on the blackened walls. Prayer caps, shoes and prayer mats were scattered across a bloodied floor and ceiling fans were twisted.
According to eyewitnesses, a young boy aged 15-16 years had entered the mosque through a window and detonated his strapped-explosives in the main hall at around 1:40 pm just after finishing of Friday prayers.
Mastan Afridi, an eyewitness said that when the suicide bomber entered the mosque, he shouted: "Who will throw me out of the area now?" And this challenge of the attacker was followed by a huge explosion. Locals said that some militants had entered into the area few days ago and they were warned by local tribal people to leave.
Government officials also confirmed that the blast was a suicide attack.
"It was a suicide attack. The bomber was wearing about 8-10kg of explosives and was on foot. He detonated in the main prayer hall," said Syed Ahmed Jan, assistant political agent of Khyber Agency. He said that ball bearings were used in the blast.
The injured and bodies were rushed to hospitals in Peshawar, about 15 km from the blast scene.
Dr Zulfiqar, an official at Peshawar's Khyber Teaching Hospital said that 51 injured people had been brought to that facility alone. An official Hayatabad Medical Complex said that 40 wounded people were brought there. The remaining injured were rushed to Lady Reading hospital. Officials said that most of the wounded were in critical condition.
The bombing of the mosque at Jamrud was not the first of its kind but it came after a long interlude. An attack on the mosque in the same town killed 48 people in March 2009.
No one has yet taken credit for the attack but Pakistani Taliban attacked worshipping places in the past. However, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) recently claimed that they do not carry out attacks on mosques, so it will be interesting to see if there is any claim of responsibility at all this time.
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PESHAWAR: A suicide bomber has killed at least 50 people and injured more than 100 others when he blew himself up inside a mosque in Pakistan's north western tribal region on Friday, government officials said.
The blast occurred when about 500 hundred people had gathered for Friday prayers at the mosque in Ghundai village of Jamrud town in the Khyber tribal region. The area is of strategic importance and serves as the doorway to the Khyber Pass which leads into Afghanistan. The US and NATO forces use Khyber Pass as a principal route for its lethal and non-lethal supplies in the current Afghan theater of conflict.
The Friday prayers normally draw bigger crowds in the month of Ramadan. "Had the mosque's building being caved in, the casualties would have been more," locals said. TV footage from the scene showed a heavily damaged building with marks of pellets on the blackened walls. Prayer caps, shoes and prayer mats were scattered across a bloodied floor and ceiling fans were twisted.
According to eyewitnesses, a young boy aged 15-16 years had entered the mosque through a window and detonated his strapped-explosives in the main hall at around 1:40 pm just after finishing of Friday prayers.
Mastan Afridi, an eyewitness said that when the suicide bomber entered the mosque, he shouted: "Who will throw me out of the area now?" And this challenge of the attacker was followed by a huge explosion. Locals said that some militants had entered into the area few days ago and they were warned by local tribal people to leave.
Government officials also confirmed that the blast was a suicide attack.
"It was a suicide attack. The bomber was wearing about 8-10kg of explosives and was on foot. He detonated in the main prayer hall," said Syed Ahmed Jan, assistant political agent of Khyber Agency. He said that ball bearings were used in the blast.
The injured and bodies were rushed to hospitals in Peshawar, about 15 km from the blast scene.
Dr Zulfiqar, an official at Peshawar's Khyber Teaching Hospital said that 51 injured people had been brought to that facility alone. An official Hayatabad Medical Complex said that 40 wounded people were brought there. The remaining injured were rushed to Lady Reading hospital. Officials said that most of the wounded were in critical condition.
The bombing of the mosque at Jamrud was not the first of its kind but it came after a long interlude. An attack on the mosque in the same town killed 48 people in March 2009.
No one has yet taken credit for the attack but Pakistani Taliban attacked worshipping places in the past. However, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) recently claimed that they do not carry out attacks on mosques, so it will be interesting to see if there is any claim of responsibility at all this time.
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